


Leave the Door Open

by MusicalLuna



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Ficlet Collection, M/M, Not Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase Two Compliant, Originally Posted on Tumblr
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-25
Updated: 2017-08-02
Packaged: 2018-09-15 22:12:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 32
Words: 17,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9259664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MusicalLuna/pseuds/MusicalLuna
Summary: A collection of Steve/Tony fics under 1000 words that were originally posted on Tumblr. The ones that aren't pure fluff.





	1. When Steve and Tony Fight

**Author's Note:**

> **Warnings:** Fighting
> 
>  **Tags:** Established Relationship, Fighting, Explicit Language, Misunderstanding, Insecure!Tony, Drama, Arguing

When they don’t yet know what they’re fighting about, Steve and Tony fight about how Steve is too demanding and how Tony never listens.  
  
Steve is vicious in an argument; he never pulls his punches and he only hits where it hurts. If it weren’t for his apologies (they’re the best Tony’s ever heard) and how effortlessly he loves Tony when they’re **not** fighting, the first one probably would have done them in.  
  
Tony’s just as bad though. now that he’s learned Steve he knows how to needle until Steve’s so angry he can hardly see straight, because then he controls the conversation, no matter what it is Steve says.  
  
Fortunately, they do a hell of a lot more bickering than they do legitimately arguing.  
  
Unfortunately, the last month…or two months–god, how long has it even been?–have been hellish. Just about everything that can go wrong has gone wrong. SI is at it’s lowest point in the stocks since the crash following the press conference following Afghanistan, Steve’s on probation after what was very nearly a court marshal, and he’s been benched, which of course has made him an absolute pleasure. The only reason he’s even actually honoring the benching is because Fury **sided** with the World Security Council and told him if he didn’t take the time, he’d be in a hell of a lot more trouble. Normally the Avengers would have balked, but Thor’s in Asgard and Clint’s in a coma and Natasha is pissed and even after all these years Bruce’s word doesn’t stand up in front of a bunch of US politicians.  
  
All of that, and Tony’s barely slept because **Steve** is barely sleeping and Tony’s nightmares are more aggressive when Steve’s not around. He’s been working night and day and he’s fucking exhausted honestly, especially with everyone and their mother on his case about either SI and pushing out a new product or Steve and how Tony’s basically been left holding up the shambles of the Avengers team.  
  
It’s been a nightmare and he’s at his wit’s end. Just talking to other humans grates on his nerves so it’s just shitty timing that Steve comes by immediately following the near-amputation of one of his fingers, while he’s cursing up a blue streak and generally hating his existence.  
  
Within seconds they’re snapping, and by sixty seconds they’re shouting.  
  
Steve snarls that Tony should have done more to back him up, that this never would have happened if he’d only **listened** and Tony bristles and yells that **maybe** Steve should have actually taken the word of his teammate at face value and if he **had** maybe Clint wouldn’t be in a goddamn coma and Steve wouldn’t have gotten himself benched.  
  
It gets worse from there.  
  
Steve mentions Tony’s father, so Tony brings up something they fought about almost ten years ago, that he knows has always eaten at Steve. Steve’s knuckles go white and when he turns to leave it’s because he can leave and go destroy something in the gym or kill Tony.  
  
When he’s alone again, breathing hard in the empty shop, a wrench rattling in his shaking hand, Tony dimly recognizes that it’s the worst fight they’ve ever had, and he doesn’t care. He’s still so angry he doesn’t care.  
  
Over the next four days, Tony barely sees Steve. On the few occasions he does, the anger surges back in a snap, and he can see it happening to Steve, too. Part of him knows they’re both being fucking insane and that it’s probably 90% sleep deprivation and 10% general shittiness, but neither of them can seem to stop. Tony gets less sleep than ever.  
  
Then on a dark, drizzly afternoon, he comes back to their bedroom, scrubbing his hands over unshorn cheeks and stops in the doorway.  
  
Steve is packing.  
  
Tony stands there, staring.  
  
Steve’s blond eyebrows are set low over his eyes, his mouth pinched around the corners. It’s a strange combination of angry and sad that Tony’s seen on more than one occasion.  
  
He’s **packing**.  
  
All of his clothes are sitting in piles on the bed and oh god.  
  
Tony’s anger dribbles away leaving him cold and hollow. Shit, they haven’t spoken two civil words to one another in almost a week, he should have seen this coming. He should have **known** Steve would get fed up with it eventually. God, it hurts so much fucking worse than he ever expected.  
  
He breathes in through his mouth and then **makes** himself choke out, “Do you need any help?” because he’s an adult goddammit and he’s going to act like one if it kills him, which it really might, it feels like he’s tearing somewhere on the inside.  
  
Steve looks back at him and he looks pissed off, but he looks torn up, too, and it **hurts** oh, god, it **hurts**. He did this to Steve, did this to **himself**.  
  
“No, Tony,” he says quietly, and he sounds so tired, “I’ve got it.”  
  
He goes back to packing, turning his back on Tony and that’s what finally gives him the courage, to force the words out in anger because anything else and he’s going to lose it. “Can I just ask why?” Tony demands and his voice only breaks a little.  
  
“Why what, Tony?” Steve asks, staring down at the ties spread across the foot of the bed.  
  
“Why you’re **leaving me** ,” Tony spits out.  
  
The silence that  follows feels like it goes on forever.  
  
Then Steve turns, his brow furrowed to create that tiny line between his eyes that shows up when he’s trying to understand something. He looks at Tony, who can feel how wet his eyes are, the way his chin is trembling, but there’s nothing he can do about it, so he just stares back, waiting for his goddamn answer.  
  
Steve drops the ties in his hand, his mouth falling open. “ **Tony** ,” he says, aghast, “I’m going to **Washington**. I’ll be back in four days!”  
  
“What?” Tony breathes, heart catching in his chest. Then, wobbly: “You will?”  
  
Steve strides toward him, reaching to grasp his shoulders. “I have to go back to Washington!” he repeats. “The Senate Committee, Tony. I know we’ve been kind of at each other’s throats, but–” He looks devastated, and the relief is so strong Tony could cry.  
  
“But you’re coming back?”  
  
“Of course, yes, of course I am, are you nuts?” Steve says, and leans in to kiss him over and over, one hand curled around his neck.


	2. Nat and Clint Tease Steve About Ship Names and He Gets Jelly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint/Nat are teasing steve about Tony and Pepper (oh they were like ken and barbie, so good together, things like that.) just to get him worked up and laugh but it ended up striking a nerve and steve gets jealous/upset with tony and Tony has no clue why? And when he finally figures it out he reassures cap that pepper is a thing of the past? If that made any sense.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** None.
> 
>  **Tags:** Jealousy, Jealous!Steve, Media, past Tony/Pepper, Drama, Established Relationship

Steve is polishing his shoes in the living room with the TV on when Natasha, who is sitting with Clint in the loveseat to the left of the sofa, says, “The entertainment rags are calling you and Stark ‘Stony’.”  
  
Steve looks up to see that the show he’d been watching is over and has been replaced by one of the celebrity gossip ones he hates. There are a couple of unflattering pictures of him and Tony carefully hiding their faces from the paparazzi—not that it helps.  
  
“That is an awful name,” Clint says. “The last one was way better.”  
  
“You mean the one for Tony and Pepper?” Natasha says.  
  
“That’s the one. Pepperony, wasn’t it?”  
  
Natasha hmms. “Their names did blend better.” She shoots Steve a look, a small smile twisting her lips. “Maybe it’s a sign.”  
  
“A sign of what?” Steve asks, even though he knows better. He can tell just by that smile that Natasha’s gearing up to lay into him. Bucky used to get that look, too.  
  
“Of compatibility, duh,” Clint says.  
  
“Why would that have anything to do with it?” Steve asks, frowning.  
  
Natasha shrugs. “There’s more support for the couples with a cute name. People get invested.”  
  
Steve stares. “I’m not in a relationship with people. Or a name. I’m in a relationship with Tony.”  
  
“Hey, we’re just saying. There are still a lot of people out there who are convinced Pepperony is still going to happen.” Clint points at the TV. “Look, what did I just say.”  
  
And when he looks, there is, in fact, a paparazzi photo of Tony and Pepper huddled together under an umbrella, faces tilted toward one another. The hostess is picking apart their body language meticulously. Steve huffs.  
  
“They do that to all of us. They think I’m cheating on him with Thor every other week.”  
  
“They were good together,” Natasha says. “I was surprised when it didn’t work out.”  
  
Steve shrugs. “If they liked it, they would have put a ring on it.”  
  
Clint howls with mirth and Steve’s deadpan delivery even gets a short bark of laughter out of Natasha. Steve allows himself a wry smile.  
  
“Those are some pretty pointy stilettos you have to fill, Steve,” Natasha says with a wicked little grin. “You really think you can do it?”  
  
“I learned a lot from the USO girls,” Steve says. “I’m sure I’ll manage.”

  
  
~

  
A few days later, Steve parks his bike out the front of the Tower and waits for Tony to come down for their date.  
  
When Tony still hasn’t appeared after twenty minutes, Steve realizes he’s probably forgotten, wrapped up in something as usual. He sighs, mostly exasperated with himself for forgetting how easily distracted Tony is, and heads up to get him.  
  
JARVIS informs him that Tony’s in his lab (unsurprising). Luckily they haven’t made any concrete plans, so he’ll have time to shepherd Tony into the shower if necessary.  
  
To his surprise, Tony looks fresh out of the shower. His hair is spiky and wet, and he’s wearing one of the deep red shirts that look so good on him, buttoning it up as he crosses the room.  
  
Pepper is waiting for him on the other side, trying to smother a smile, his tie in hand. Through the glass, Steve can’t quite hear what they’re saying, but he can see their mouths move, and the easy closeness between them. Pepper situates his tie and smooths it down. Her eyes are soft and warm. Tony’s are crinkled at the corners, filled with undisguised affection.  
  
Steve is struck by the picture they make, and, unbidden, he remembers the conversation with Natasha and Clint. They are gorgeous together. It’s not difficult to imagine them being more. He wonders who broke it off, if it was Tony or if it was Pepper. Either way, with the way he looks at her, Steve can believe all too easily that Tony is being obstinately mature about whatever it was, knowing anything less could mean Pepper walking out of his life entirely.  
  
Steve knows how it feels to take whatever you can get. He saw Peggy almost every day up until her death.  
  
Yeah, he knows.  
  
He watches Tony’s nose wrinkle around a smile and the long line of Pepper’s throat as she laughs, the way Tony’s fingers curl around her wrists lightly.  
  
“Would you like to enter, Captain?” JARVIS asks, startling him. The movement catches Pepper and Tony’s gaze and Steve’s heart tightens a little at the way Tony’s face brightens.  
  
The door slides open and he exclaims, “Steve! Impeccable timing, as usual.”  
  
“I’ve been waiting downstairs for almost a half an hour,” Steve says.  
  
“What?” Tony looks at Pepper and she holds up her hands.  
  
“I told you you needed to hurry.”  
  
“You need to be more explicit!” He spins on his heel, gesturing emphatically with both hands. “I’m sorry, Steve. I lost track of time.”  
  
“It’s fine,” Steve says, distracted by the way Pepper catches Tony’s waving hands, fingers nimbly fastening his cufflinks into place.  
  
“I was totally going to be on time this time, Steve, I swear.”  
  
“Tony,” Pepper says, sharp enough to cut through the chatter in Tony’s head. “He said it was fine.”  
  
“Right,” Tony says. He takes a deep breath and then looks down at himself. “Am I good? Are we good to go?”  
  
Pepper smirks fondly and reaches to slide a sheaf of papers off of a nearby lab table. “Sign these, and yes, you are good to go.”  
  
Tony makes a face at her, but accepts the pen she holds out for him, pulling the cap off with his teeth. He glances over the papers while Pepper waits patiently.  
  
Steve knows he’s not particularly good at reading people, at least, not where relationships are concerned. The whole ‘fondue’ foul up had proved that. But…  
  
“There,” Tony says around the pen cap, and signs the last page with a flourish. “Done. Can I go on my date now?”  
  
Pepper nods. “You may go on your date now. It was nice to see you, Steve.”  
  
He nods back, awkwardly. “Yeah, you too, Pepper.”  
  
Tony slouches back into the nearest lab table as the sound of her clicking heels follows her to the elevator and looks up at him. “So. Man with the plan. Hi.”  
  
“Hi,” Steve says, and smiles, but it feels strange on his face.  
  
It must look strange, too, because Tony’s contented expression slips into concern. “You okay?”  
  
“Yeah… I’m…” He’s not sure what he is. He can’t get the image of Tony and Pepper out of his head. If there’s still something between them… He takes a deep breath. “Tony, are you and Pepper—” _Don’t say fondue, don’t say fondue._ “Do you still—” He looks helplessly at Tony, hoping he understands.  
  
Tony stares at him.  
  
Steve feels shame burn its way up the back of his neck and he hunches his shoulders, reaching up to put his face in his hands. “Shit. I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Tony, I didn’t mean— Just forget I said anything, would you?”  
  
“You think that Pepper and me…”  
  
“No!” But that’s not quite true. “I don’t know.” He groans. “It was all Clint and Natasha’s fault, they were teasing me about our stupid couple name and how everyone thinks you should be with Pepper and I just… I lost it. I didn’t think it mattered, but now, seeing you together—”  
  
“Hang on, hang on, is this jealousy?” Tony says and Steve winces.  
  
Then Tony’s hands are on his wrists prying them away from his face. Guiltily, he meets Tony’s gaze.  
  
“You’re jealous,” Tony repeats. “Of Pepper.”  
  
That irks Steve. “Well of course I am, she’s smart and beautiful and powerful—”  
  
“So are you,” Tony says. Steve huffs and deflates.  
  
“I don’t…” His voice goes quiet. “I don’t think I can take whatever’s left again, Tony.”  
  
“Hey,” Tony says, sharply, and Steve looks up automatically on instinct. “You are not getting whatever’s left, all right? You’re getting everything. There’s nothing else. I care about Pepper, yeah, she’s seen me through hell, okay? But we didn’t work out. We thought it wasn’t weird, but it was weird and it’s better this way. We’re happy. I’m happy. I love you.”  
  
Steve’s fingers flex. “I’m sorry,” he blurts. “I never should have— It was rash, and stupid—”  
  
“Yeah, well, so are you,” Tony says, and hauls him down for a kiss.


	3. Tony Seethes After Steve Gets Sexually Harassed in the Bathroom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** Off-screen sexual harassment
> 
> **Tags:** Sexual Harassment, Steve Doesn't Like Being Pretty, Embarrassment, Righteously Angry!Tony, Emotional Hurt/Comfort

Steve had really only come because time with Tony was time with Tony, even if it meant attending a business conference on corporations in the 21st century. He wasn’t sure if people recognized him, didn’t recognize him, or what, but it seemed like every time he left Tony’s side there was someone there, asking him if he was enjoying himself, touching his arm, asking if he’d like to go out for a smoke, or maybe dinner. One of the men even corners him in the john and won’t let him leave until he’s written his number on the palm of Steve’s hand.

Steve hurries back to the table after, reaching for his napkin as he sits back down and dipping it in his waterglass. Tony glances up from his phone.

“Hey, what took you so long?”

The tips of Steve’s ears burn with humiliation and he mutters, “I got held up.” The numbers are written on the inside of his right palm and Steve can’t quite scrub as hard as he’d like with his left hand. He grimaces and holds the napkin out. “Tony, can you please—”

One eyebrow goes up as Tony accepts the napkin. “Did you spill something on yourself in the restroom?” Then his eyes go wide and he leans abruptly forward, looking into Steve’s lap. “Oh my god, did you—”

“No,” Steve grits. “Nothing like that.”

“Oh, okay. Good. Because if you’d deprived me of participating I’d be incredibly put out. Are you all right? What’s got you all worked up?”

Steve sighs and uncurls his hand, keeping it well below the edge of the table. He doesn’t want anyone seeing and getting ideas. Things are already bad enough without announcing to everyone that it’s apparently open season on Steve Rogers.

“What’s this?” Tony asks, callused fingers taking his wrist. “How did you…wait. Is that a _phone number?_ ”

“Please just get it off, Tony,” he pleads, and is relieved when Tony covers it with the napkin.

Tony gives him a tight-lipped look and says, “Somebody held you up, huh? What, he wouldn’t let you leave until he gave you the number?”

Steve nods and his whole face burns this time. “I should have just pushed past him. I didn’t want to make a scene.”

“Uh huh,” Tony says, his sharp eyes darting around the ballroom. “Are you gonna tell me which prick it was?”

“So _you_ can cause a scene?” Steve says, his mouth pulling up at one corner. “I don’t think so, Tony.”

Tony grunts, scowling around at the surrounding tables. It takes a full five minutes for him to scrub the numbers away and even then there are still bits of ink caught in the lines of Steve’s skin. It’s bright red everywhere else.

“You’re gonna wind up bleeding if I go much further,” Tony says and Steve nods.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it,” Tony mutters and then lifts his hand and makes a show of kissing the tender skin. Steve squeezes his fingers.


	4. Tony's Anxiety Spirals Late at Night and He Wakes Steve Up for Comfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> heseniorcitizen replied to your post:i need a disgustingly fluffy no-effort plotless…
> 
> Tony can’t sleep so he wakes Steve up and forces him to stroke his ego/ tell him the reasons why he loves him. Except when Steve gets no sleep he’s a snarky little thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omg i’m crying because I only got the part up to the slash as a preview and I was like roflmao this is the crackiest prompt
> 
> warning for anxiety ya’ll!  
> \--  
>  **Warnings:**
> 
> **Tags:** Anxiety, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Late Night, Insecure!Tony, Anxiety Attack, Brief Sexual Content, Established Relationship

Tony sits on the edge of the bed, staring out at the twinkling skyline for what feels like hours. He’s tired, but he’s also _wired_ and his brain is running a thousand miles an hour, spitting out things like, _you didn’t even accomplish anything today, you’re worthless, Dad would be disgusted if he saw how little progress you made, god, why do the Avengers even keep you around, if being screwed up was an Olympic sport you’d have a gold medal in every event_ and on and on.

His heart is thudding too hard against the casing of the arc reactor and he can’t even _look_ at Steve sleeping in the bed behind him because every time he does, despair wells up and threatens to choke him.

Except Steve’s told him a thousand times to wake him if he’s struggling and he’s definitely struggling.

He stares hard at the lights until they blur into a wash of color, anxiety creeping up until he can hardly breathe. It’s so intense it makes the anxiety of waking Steve for something so stupid seem inconsequential and he twists around, lays a hand on Steve’s shoulder and gently shakes him.

“Steve,” he whispers and his voice catches. He clears his throat and tries again: “Steve.”

“Mmnh,” Steve mumbles, and lifts his arm, squinting at Tony from under it. “T'ny? Y'okay?”

Tony lets out a brittle whisper of a laugh and lays his hand on Steve’s hip, right over the band of his sleep pants. “Um. No? I mean I’m not bleeding to death or anything. I feel sort of like the universe is going to collapse and take me out and everything I’ve ever done was in vain, so kind of like a black hole of issues—or I guess maybe a supernova? We’d have to talk to Foster about the appropriate—”

Steve covers Tony’s mouth with the heavy weight of one broad palm.

Tony swallows and then mumbles into it, “Thank you.”

“It's—” Steve glances at the bedside clock, winces, and then sighs. “It’s four o'clock in the morning, Tony, and you just woke me up an hour after I fell asleep.”

“I know, I’m sorry,” Tony says, still speaking into his hand. He feels like shit. Steve mashes his hand down a little harder.

“You’re going to have to go a little slower if you want me to follow along,” he finishes, glaring. Then he draws his hand back and waits.

“Oh,” Tony says, blinking. “You— You’re not mad?”

Steve rolls his eyes. “I _am_ the one who told you to wake me up if something was bothering you.”

“Well, sure, but lots of people say stuff like that and they don’t really mean it. And you just fell asleep and you’ve got that thing in Washington tomorrow and your flight leaves at seven, so you have to be up, in like, _two and half hours_.”

Covering his own eyes, Steve groans. “Can we not talk about what I have to do in two hours? What’s going on with you?”

Tony squirms and reaches for Steve’s waistband again, fiddling with the drawstring through the fabric. “You know how I get. My head just fills up and…” He mimics an explosion with his mouth. “I just— Would you— I mean, it’s stupid, god, but—”

“Spit it out, Tony,” Steve says, but he sounds fond and his hand is on Tony’s knee, rubbing little circles with his thumb.

“Could you just—maybe tell me I don’t suck?” Tony makes himself blurt and then stares at the sheets, the back of his neck burning. God, if anyone knew Tony-fucking-Stark woke up his boyfriend in the middle of the goddamned night to stroke his ego that’d be the end.

Steve rolls over, easily pushing Tony down into the mattress, and covers him with his body. “Well, you _could_ suck more,” he murmurs, nose skimming along the shell of Tony’s ear.

Tony stares up at the ceiling, mouth dropped open around a smile. “I wake you up to tell you how inadequate I feel and you comfort me by telling me I don’t blow you enough?”

He feels Steve’s lips pull back around a smile. “You have a talented mouth.”

“I guess I can’t argue with that.”

The lightest of kisses is laid at the hook of his collarbone and Tony brings his hand up to curl around the back of Steve’s neck. Steve’s heavy and solid on top of him and it should freak him out, should make the anxiety worse, because he’s pinned, helpless; it doesn’t make it worse though—it’s reassuring. Steve holds him in place and he feels safe, stable.

“You care,” Steve says quietly, the words a low hum from his chest to Tony’s. “You don’t just envision the world better, you’re doing everything in your power to make it that way. You brought clean energy to the world and then fought tooth and nail against greedy corporations to make it available and affordable to everyone. You make the world a better place, Tony.”

The honesty and the sheer conviction in Steve’s voice makes Tony feel splayed open, and he desperately wants to pull his arm and leg under Steve’s body with the rest of him where he can hide from it. But he can’t move.

“Yeah?” he rasps instead, hands too tight around Steve’s neck, Steve’s shoulder.

“Yeah, you dummy,” Steve says. “You inspire me.”

Tony’s throat closes up, tears pricking at his eyes.

He clings tighter to Steve, wondering how he got so goddamned lucky.

“Go to sleep, Tony,” Steve orders gently. “You’re not a failure, not even close. And you can always wake me. For anything. For nothing.”

When he laughs, it’s a little wet, and he presses his face into Steve’s throat. “Yeah, I think I might just do that.”


	5. Three Sentence Fics

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three sentence fics written for prompts on Tumblr.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** None
> 
> **Tags:** AU, Parent!Tony, Anxious!Tony, Supportive!Steve, Waiter!AU, Hurt/Comfort, Parent!Steve, Teacher!Tony, Hot for Teacher :P, past Peggy/Steve, kid!Clint, Paramedic AU, Pre-Serum!Steve, Hurt/Comfort, Humor

[dingobait](http://dingobait.tumblr.com/) asked:

#  [Stony. Someone shows up claiming to be Tonys child from before Steve and tony got together.](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/94979464380/stony-someone-shows-up-claiming-to-be-tonys-child)

[16 August 2014](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/94979464380/stony-someone-shows-up-claiming-to-be-tonys-child)

“He’s yours?”

Tony, sitting on a nearby stool with one leg bouncing like a jackhammer, nods, looking a little like he wants to throw up.

Steve takes his hand and squeezes, says, “Introduce us then, it’s only polite.”

**\--**

Anonymous asked:

#  [1) Steve and Tony 2) Waiters at a restaurant. (you don't have to do this if you don't want. I won't ever be offended)](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/95019119135/1-steve-and-tony-2-waiters-at-a-restaurant)

[17 August 2014](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/95019119135/1-steve-and-tony-2-waiters-at-a-restaurant)

Tony stumbles through the doors to the kitchen halfway through service Friday night, spitting, “ _Fuck!”_ the second they close behind him.

Steve’s jaw drops; Tony’s white dress shirt has a wet, brown stain splashed down the front that looks an awful lot like— “Is that _coffee?”_  
  
“Yeah,” Tony grits, his shaking hands subsiding when Steve reaches for his buttons, “apparently Table Four wasn’t satisfied with my service.”

—

don”t worry, i won’t!! i will always reply and let you know if i can’t/won’t though! :D

(i might have cheated a little with that middle line, but oh well!1 XD)

 

\--

 

Anonymous asked:

# [1) Steve and Tony 2) Teacher/Parent AU](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/95035612020/1-steve-and-tony-2-teacherparent-au)

[17 August 2014](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/95035612020/1-steve-and-tony-2-teacherparent-au)

Clint gets sent home with a detention and a note from his teacher saying Steve needs to come in for a teacher-parent meeting to discuss his behavior three days after school starts.

Steve knows he acts out because he’s still coming to terms with Peggy’s death a year later, but that’s okay, he’ll process his grief in his own time and Steve will go in to tell his teacher he’s sorry and that they’re working on it.

He nearly swallows his tongue when he sees Mr. Stark and feels a stirring deep down that he thought he’d forgotten how to feel.

\--

Anonymous asked:

# [1) Steve and Tony 2) Paramedic/patient](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/95040102695/1-steve-and-tony-2-paramedicpatient)

[17 August 2014](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/95040102695/1-steve-and-tony-2-paramedicpatient)

After the movie, Bucky goes to the bathroom and Steve goes to get a drink from the water fountain—unfortunately when he straightens up, he gets lightheaded and winds up crumpling to the floor.

Apparently they’re just around the corner from a hospital because by the time Bucky emerges from the bathroom, there are two paramedics striding across the lobby of the theater toward Steve and the small crowd of people trying to insist he _stay put_ even though he’s told them he’s fine, he didn’t hit his head, it just _happens._

“All right, all right, everybody back up the booty,” the dark haired medic says and Steve stifles his smile as the crowd disperses.


	6. Country Boys AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for maplerosekisses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** None
> 
> **Tags:** Country Boys AU, Explicit Language, Fluff, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Romance, Teenagers

Steve’s pick-up truck is red, scuffed and rusty, dinged and banged up.

It’s a piece of shit and Tony loves it.

Summer nights like this, Steve drives the truck up the driveway outside Howard’s house, idling it along so it doesn’t make too much noise. Tony sneaks out and climbs up in the cab, grinning, eyes wild.

They drive out beyond the outskirts of town, splashing mud up behind them in huge plumes.

When they get out far enough, Steve parks the truck in a field and they wander out into the grass, flopping down when they find a good spot and stretching out on their backs. They talk about everything—Steve’s Ma and how she’s doing, how Tony’s prototype is coming along, Nat and Bucky’s “secret” relationship.

The moon is starting to sink down toward the horizon and they’ve been quiet awhile. Steve can feel Tony’s eyes on his face.

“What?” he murmurs finally, turning to meet Tony’s eyes.

Tony shakes his head. “Nothing.” He puts his hand on Steve’s chest, one finger tracing figure-eights over Steve’s heart, where his shirt is sticking a little because it’s hot and he’s sweaty. Eventually he looks up at Steve again and says, voice soft, “You’re the best thing that’s ever come out of this place.”

“You’re wrong,” Steve says, quiet and sure. He leans up on his elbow and curls his hand around the back of Tony’s neck. He looks him straight in the eye so Tony will know he means what he says. “You are the best thing that’s ever come out of this town, you hear? Don’t you let anybody tell you different.”

Tony seems to hear what he’s not saying, because his chin moves in a jerky nod. Then he ducks down and buries his face against Steve’s chest, heedless of the heat.

Steve pulls him closer.


	7. College Sweethearts Steve and Tony Run Into One Another Years Later

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** None
> 
> **Tags:** Summer Love, College Sweethearts, Reunion, Romance, Angst, Artist Steve, Established Relationship, Break Up, Get Back Together Years Later, Lack of Punctuation and Other Niceties

just before summer break 1988 tony turns eighteen years old.

he goes back to new york, to his father’s mansion where he gets to see his mother, but mostly suffers his father’s disapproving glares and brain-melting boredom

then one afternoon he’s out getting a coffee (avoiding his old man) when he runs into this blond guy with the prettiest blue eyes he’s ever seen. his name is steve and he’s an artist and he has a dry sense of humor and a smile that makes tony’s knees go weak. he doesn’t know who tony is, except the name’s familiar and he doesn’t like what stark industries stands for, which is just fine with tony.

steve is twenty and tony hasn’t looked at somebody with such reverance since he met rhodey in ‘85.

he’s way past his first time, but steve isn’t and he makes tony wait until he feels like he’s going to die from it. but when they finally do the deed, tony finds himself overwhelmed with emotion—he’s never cared this much about anyone he had sex with. he spends the summer drenched in sweltering manhattan sunshine and smeared with paint from steve’s deft fingers.

when autumn comes and it’s time for him to go back to mit, he doesn’t know what to do. he wants to be with steve, but it’s a miracle his father hasn’t caught them yet and he’s going to be swamped senior year getting ready for graduation and preparing for his Master’s. before he can say anything about it, steve says, _this has been fun, tony. thank you._

 

and tony doesn’t know what to say about that so he goes off to school and that’s that. if his chest aches for months and he keeps turning to speak to someone who isn’t there, dum-e isn’t going to say anything.

years later, after his parents have died and he’s taken over the company, after afghanistan and after obie tries to take the arc reactor, pepper pulls him aside at a gala to introduce him to an artist who’s work she’s added to the stark collection and there’s steve. standing right in front of him.

he’s forty-two now and steve is forty-four. there are wrinkles around his eyes and mouth that tony doesn’t remember, but his smile makes tony’s knees go weak even all these years later. they start talking like twenty _years_ haven’t gone by—god, he’s old—and as the party winds down around them, tony realizes he’s every bit in love with steve as he was back then.

“how are you?” he asks, embarrassed that he hasn’t already, “married? 2.5 kids?”

steve smiles, a little sad and shakes his head. “no. not married. no kids. i hear you haven’t settled down either.”

tony smooths his lapels. “well, i’ve got a reputation to maintain, you know.”

steve laughs and tony tries not to grin like an idiot. “that’s hard to believe,” he says. then his expression turns wistful. “you must have people hammering down your door.”

“who, me? i’m kind of a hot mess, steve, i guess you don’t keep up with the news still.”

steve huffs and his eyes shine in the low light. “i kept up with you. you were the one that got away after all.”

“i _distinctly_ remember you breaking up with me,” tony says.

steve nods and sighs, hands slipping into his pockets. “yeah. stupidest thing i’ve ever done. you were young—”

"so were you!”

“—and i didn’t think i could be enough for someone like you, someone so smart and good-looking, always with an eye for the future. you deserved better.”

tony stares at him, heart kicking at the back of his throat, because even if that’s the _stupidest_ thing he’s ever heard, if he’s hearing steve right— he swallows and steps forward. “deserved? past tense?”

he can see a flush crawl over steve’s cheeks, even in the dark. “still do. you deserve everything tony.”

“i don’t want everything. i just want you.”

steve’s breath catches, tony hears it, and the look on his face is excruciatingly hopeful. “tony—”

“shut up, steve,” tony orders, before he can say something they’ll both regret—again—and he cups steve’s face in his hands and kisses him.

this time he’s not letting steve go.


	8. Steve is Having a Bad Emotions Day and Tony Stays with Him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** Depression
> 
>  **Tags:** Depressed!Steve, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Fluff, Crying Steve Rogers, Comfort, Established Relationship  
>  \--
> 
> wrote this on a previous blergh day. i like making steve cry

Tony wanders into the master suite, just after ten one morning scratching his belly and in search of an un-grease-stained pair of pants. He’s ditching the stained ones on the floor when he realizes the bed is still occupied, which is—he stares for a minute because that’s never happened before.

He takes an uncertain step forward and then stops, a flare of nerves kindling in his gut. “…Steve?”

“Hi, Tony,” he murmurs and Tony frowns, edges a little closer.

“Are you…are you feeling okay?” he asks.

Steve’s shoulders expand and contract in a silent sigh. Tony crawls onto the bed, reaching one hand out to lay it on Steve’s shoulder. “I’m just…” Steve sighs again and turns his face into the pillow. “I’ll be fine,” he says at last.

Tony peers over his shoulder and feels his heart clench at what he finds. Steve’s face is pale except for a streak of pink across his cheekbones, his eyes red-rimmed. He’s not crying, but he’s not _not-_ crying either. He looks miserable.

Tony considers asking what’s wrong, but he’s shit at dealing with stuff like this and Steve isn’t making even the slightest eye contact like he does when he wants to be coaxed to talk. “Okay,” Tony says softly and curls his legs underneath himself, moving his hand to rest on Steve’s hip, keeping his touch light. He leans sideways, propping himself up on the pillows with his elbow and very cautiously lays a kiss on Steve’s shoulder.

When Steve doesn’t move, he drops another on the curve of his skull and brushes his fingers along the line of Steve’s shoulder blade. From there he gets methodical about it, kissing each of the major joints within his reach, then the halfway points, the quarter marks.

Eventually Steve uncurls enough to let him link their fingers together and Tony stays, holding him together until he’s ready to do it himself again.


	9. Steve Smokes and Tony is Scandalized

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idk man i wanted to write smoking steve
> 
> **Warnings:** None
> 
> **Tags:** Smoking, Pre-Relationship, Alcoholic!Tony, Smoker!Steve, Low-Key Backwards Flirting, References to Drugs, Mild Explicit Language

After a mission, Steve always slips out for a smoke before the debriefing.

He’s aware that things are different than they used to be (shocking), and that smoking isn’t allowed inside most places, which is something he approves of—he remembers being the ninety-pound asthmatic who couldn’t step foot in most dance halls because the cloud of smoke inside made breathing a near impossibility. But during the war he’d been rationed cigarettes along with all the other men and he’d been curious.

It was something that had grown on him, a sort of Pavlovian ritual they all engaged in after every mission. He doesn’t see any reason to stop now.

That is, until Tony steps out onto the catwalk where he’s leaned up against the rail and then comes to an abrupt halt, hand frozen halfway to his face—presumably to tip down the dark-tinted sunglasses he’s wearing.

Steve raises his eyebrows. “Hi.”

“What the hell are you doing?” Tony demands, and his hand finishes it’s trip, yanking the glasses down to the tip of his nose. His brown eyes are wide. He looks maybe…horrified?

Steve glances down at himself, half expecting to be sprouting horns or to find his skin turning blood red.

Nope. Still the usual arrangement of body parts.

He looks back up and frowns. “What do you mean what the hell am I doing?” Then he sticks the cigarette back between his lips and straightens up, threading his thumbs into his belt.

Tony swallows, hard enough Steve can see his Adam’s apple go all the way up and back down. Then he points accusingly at…Steve’s face? “You’re _smoking?”_

Steve frowns again and glances around the catwalk. There aren’t any signs posted about it not being allowed—they’re on the exterior of the helicarrier, what would it matter anyway? He blows out a breath that sends smoke spiraling dizzily away in the air stream caused by the helicarrier’s slow creep over the ocean and removes it from his mouth again, flicking the ashes away. “Is that a problem?”

Tony follows that movement with his eyes, the way Steve used to see women follow Bucky’s when he smoked and drank and it makes his belly flutter. It’s quickly stifled when Tony says, “You can’t do that.”

Steve stands taller, his chin going up of its own volition. “Who says? There aren’t any no smoking signs.”

Tony splutters. “Yeah, but— Smoking is _bad_ for you.”

“So’s drinking too much,” Steve replies coolly, and his next puff comes out through his nostrils.

That makes Tony shrivel up a little, his face shuttering and Steve immediately feels bad for it. “Hey,” he says, quiet. “I’m working on that and you know it.”

Steve scrubs a hand over his face. “Yeah. Sorry. I got defensive, I shouldn’t've—”

Tony waves off the rest and says, “Smoking causes cancer, is all I’m saying. And I know you don’t do it a lot or I’d have seen you—” At that he turns a little red and then quickly goes on, “You’re harder, better, faster, stronger, not invincible, okay.”

Steve glances at the little paper stick between his fingers. “Cancer, huh?” Quieter, he says, “Morita and Falsworth both died of cancer.” He taps his chest. “Falsworth had it in his lungs, I hear.” His mouth pulls upward, but it’s not a smile, not really. “We used to say he smoked like a chimney.“

“Yeah,” Tony says, and eases up against the railing beside him, wary like Steve might lash out at him again. Guilt curls in his stomach. “Cancer’s ugly.”

Steve stubs out the cigarette on the railing, tucks the butt into one of the pockets on his belt. “I’m gonna need another way to unwind after a mission. You got any ideas?”

Tony glances at him, surprise and something wondering in his expression. It gets pushed back under an air of nonchalance and Tony shrugs. “I’m sure we can figure something out. Weed’s gonna be legal soon.”

Steve tilts his head. “I thought you had to smoke that, too.”

Tony grins. “Nah. Worst way to have pot. What you want to do is make brownies.“

“Brownies,” Steve repeats. “Now that’s an idea I can get behind.”

He smiles at the sound of Tony’s laugh.


	10. Dark!Steve and Death!Tony--Dark fluff???

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> rendingrosencrantz asked:
> 
> Dark!Steve AU based on that one text post about someone killing so they can keep seeing Death, but then finally Death's like "You're making my job way harder than it needs to be just ask me out to coffee or something Jesus fuck" (in which Tony is Death/a Reaper)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOU ARE KILLING ME WHY DID YOU PICK THE MOST HORRIBLE SAD THING
> 
> —  
>  **Warnings:** Murder, Antisemitism
> 
> **Tags:** Dark!Steve, But Steve is Not the Antisemite, He's the Murderer, Death!Tony, Strangulation, Flirting, This is Kind of Twisted?, Gruesome, Like, Steve Murders Someone On Screen, And Then Flirts With Tony/Death

Steve kneels slowly, easing the twitching form in his arms to the ground as the woman’s struggles grow weaker and weaker, dots of red appearing in her eyes as the tiny blood vessels burst. She stops moving all together and he lays her down fully.

She’s one of the leaders of an antisemitic movement that’s been gaining momentum on the west coast and the blood of no less than a dozen Jews is on her hands; Steve’s glad to have the chance to see her stopped.

When he looks up, there’s a dark haired man in a long dark overcoat that seems to absorb what little light falls on it standing over him. He’s leaning on a shiny black cane with a gold handle Steve has seen double in size, the handle flattening out into a razor-sharp scythe.

Steve smiles. “Fancy meeting you here.”

Tony glares at him. (Why Death is named _Tony_ , Steve still hasn’t figured out.) “This is the fourth time this week, Rogers. Normal people who crash airplanes in the Arctic and slip out of my grasp take that experience and, you know, _run like hell._ They don’t decide, ‘Hey, maybe I should become a serial killer!’”

Steve frowns, hackles going up. “Hey, I’m not a serial killer. I don’t kill people for fun.”

Tony rolls his eyes, eyes somehow as dark as his coat and still bright at the same time. Eyes Steve finds himself drawing when he’s idle, a pencil in hand. “No, excuse me,  you only kill bullies, how dare I mischaracterize your work.”

Standing, Steve crosses his arms over his chest and steps a little closer, enjoying the wary way Tony eyes him. “You like my work,” he says.

Tony gives him a long look, eyes narrowing thoughtfully. “You’re not wrong.”

Steve smirks and brushes his hands together. “Well, as always, it was a pleasure, Tony.”

He’s turning to go when Tony huffs and brings the cane down with a petulant crack. “Goddammit, Rogers, ask me out for coffee, you prick.”

Steve wheels back around, eyebrows climbing for his hairline. “Is that— That’s allowed?”

The look he gets from Tony is calculatedly incredulous. “Okay, see, that hurts my feelings. _Now_ you’re all about the rules?”

A blush spills over Steve’s face in a hot rush and he scratches at his forehead. “I, uh, just didn’t think, I mean, it’s not that I—” He quashes the flow of words with his own hand and looks away, collecting himself. When he looks back, Tony’s still watching him with those mystifying eyes of his, mouth twitching with amusement. “Tony,” Steve tries again, sliding a little closer. “Would you like to go for coffee some time?”

Death grins at him.


	11. High school popular kid/nerd au

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [raisedbylibrarians](http://raisedbylibrarians.tumblr.com/) asked:  
>  Stony 10 if you are still taking requests (I love the Tony-Always-Being-Cold one so much!)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** Bullying
> 
> **Tags:** Bullying, Violence, Blood, Asthma, Pre-Serum Steve, Popular Kid Tony Stark, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Explicit Language

“Hey, Rogers, lemme provide you with the materials for your next great masterpiece, huh?”

“I got everything I need, Flash,” Steve mutters, but before the words have fully left his mouth, there’s a fist hitting him across one cheek. He flies back, hitting the ground hard. For a second, he can’t catch his breath, and the moment he can, he’s choking on blood.

He rolls over, coughing and spitting, and red smatters the ground.

“Paint with that,” Flash sneers and Steve gets wobbly arms under him and starts to push up. His throat’s starting to feel tight, but he does his best to ignore it. He has to get on his feet.

He’s barely halfway there when Flash clocks him again. His teeth slice into his cheek and more blood comes pouring out his open mouth.

“Hey, knock it off, _knock it off!_ ” someone shouts and the part of Steve’s brain not focused on the fact that his throat is starting to close up recognizes the voice of Tony Stark, the most popular kid in three grades. “Beat it, Flash!” Tony snaps angrily.

“Sure thing,” Flash says and Steve realizes what he’s going to do about three seconds before it happens, tries to scramble out of the way. He’s clumsy though, and Flash’s boot nails him in the ribs, kicking what little oxygen he’s got left right back out.

Steve’s chest screams.

“Jeez, are you okay? I can’t believe they let that asshole—hey. Shit, what’s wrong?”

Despite his best efforts, Steve writhes, hands clawing at the dirt as his chest muscles spasm. Tony knocks him in the side with his knee and amazingly, that helps; the muscles unlock and Steve sucks in a whaling gasp—or as much of one as he can through a throat the size of a pinhole.

He gropes for his bag.

Tony, being the smart kid he is, seems to have put everything together and he’s already tearing though it. Finally, he finds Steve’s inhaler and jams the thing between Steve’s lips. It catches his gums and gouges a cut, but Tony presses the cartridge down and Steve puts it aside, breathing as deeply as he can.

“More?” Tony asks, and Steve nods, sucks in another, easier breath when he presses the cartridge down again. After another minute, the tightness in his chest starts to ease and Steve uncurls, lying loose and limp there on the ground just getting his breath back.

“Holy shit,” Tony says, staring at him with wide eyes, one leg crossed under him. There’s blood on the knee of his expensive jeans. “Do I need to call 911 or something?”

Steve shakes his head and croaks, rasping, “No. Happens.”

Tony stares at him, bug-eyed. “What? You almost die _all the time?_ ”

Steve shrugs one shoulder. That’s not entirely untrue.

He starts to push himself up and Tony reaches out to help him. “Maybe you should—not. You were suffocating to death like, thirty seconds ago.”

“’m fine,” Steve says, but he’s shaky and weak after the episode. Not to mention the, you know, blow to the head. “Thanks,” he says, dabbing at the stream of blood still pouring down over his lip with the tail of his sleeve. “I had it under control, but thanks.”

Tony snorts. “Yeah, sure you did, and I’m my dad’s favorite kid.”

Steve frowns at that.

“What’d you do to piss Flash off anyway?” Tony asks, breezing past it.

“Told him off for looking up girls’ skirts in middle school.”

“Really? Gross.”

“Not a lot of people who’da stood up to him for me,” Steve says, and sighs about the state of his sleeves. Ma’s gonna kill him.

“Not a lot of people are me,” Tony says, with a smug grin, following Steve’s gaze. Then, very nonchalantly, he says, “I can get that cleaned for you if you want.”

“That’s nice of you, but I’ll take Ma’s lecture if it’s all the same to you.”

“I’ve got others you could wear,” he presses. “You’re small, they’d fit okay.”

“Thanks,” Steve says firmly, and Tony looks strangely disappointed, “but I’m fine.” Then his heart starts to race and his neck starts to get hot, “But if you wanted to go for sodas after school…”

Tony fumbles and whacks Steve right across the bruise on his ribs.

“Shit!” Steve yelps, curling in. “All you had to say was no!”

“Yes!” Tony blurts instead and then turns bright red. “Oh, god, I’m sorry.”

“Ow. It’s—fine,” Steve says flapping a hand. He focuses on the important thing here. “You—you want to go?”

Tony blinks at him like he’s out of his mind and says, “Absolutely.”


	12. Steve and Tony Have Been Apart a Long Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for yolandaash

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** None
> 
>  **Tags:** Long Distance Relationship, Holograms, Mild Sexual Content/Innuendo, Explicit Language, Frustration

Tony rocks on his heels in the middle of the penthouse, and Steve reaches for his shoulder.

His hand goes right through it.

“Honey,” Tony sighs, and Steve pulls his hand back, fingers curling into a fist.

“I know,” he says, frustrated. With himself, with the situation, with everything. He scrubs his face. “I know.”

“When do you go?”

Tony’s hands are tucked securely in his pockets, preventing him from making Steve’s mistake and reaching for something that isn’t there.

The least Steve can do is look, so he does, eyes roving over the curve of the bone in Tony’s wrist, following it up to the lean curve of his muscled forearms. “Ship out tomorrow afternoon. Just before you—”

Tony sighs again. “Just before I get in. Of course.” He swears. “This _sucks.”_

The muscles in his arms tense, hands clenching in his pockets.

Steve knows he can’t touch, but he steps forward anyway, and lifts his hands to cup the face of the hologram. Tony looks up at him and Steve’s heart squeezes tight in his chest. “Two weeks. Two weeks and then maybe…”

“Don’t,” Tony says. “God, don’t, you’ll jinx it. I said that _three months ago_.”

“Worst thing you’ve ever done,” Steve agrees solemnly and Tony huffs a laugh.

“If we ever get back in the same room again, I’m going to seriously consider chaining myself to you.”

“Well, I for one, am going to suck your brain out through your dick,” Steve says cheerfully and Tony chokes on nothing and starts laughing.

“Oh my god, _don’t_ , I’ve got the worst case of blue balls.” Then his head turns, eyes focusing on something on his side of the connection. The lightness goes out of his face. “Yeah,” he says, “all right. I said all right!”

Steve wishes to God he could feel the warmth and solidness of his body against his palms, but they remain as empty as ever. Five months apart has been trying.

“Sorry, Steve,” Tony says, “I gotta—”

“Yeah. I love you.”

Tony’s mouth flickers in a smile. “Love you.”

Steve leans in to kiss his holographic cheek. “Two weeks. After that, if you have to go, I’m coming after you.”

A shiver works through Tony’s frame, his eyes going dark. “I’ll hold you to that.”

Steve smiles. “I’m counting on it.”


	13. Meeting at a support group au

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** None
> 
> **Tags:** Therapy, Support Group, Depressed!Steve, Pre-Relationship, Meet Cute, Grief, Explicit Language

Tony had only come because Rhodey had looked at him with the saddest of sad puppy eyes and said, “I’m worried about you, man. Just go one time, for me, and if you think it’s a waste of time I won’t make you go again.”

It hadn’t been as godawful as he’d expected, but it’s probably not his thing. He’s not interested in talking out his feelings over the recent deaths of his parents with a whole slew of equally fucked up people. There is, however, one particular fucked up person he wouldn’t mind spilling a few secrets to—one Steve Rogers.

He’s a tall, broad-shouldered blond man with eyes the color of a propane flame.

During the session he’d been vocal in his support, always one of the first to respond to someone in need.  The group leader had been as cognizant of this as Tony, and had pointed out three-quarters of the way through the session that Steve wasn’t here just to provide support for others, he was also here because he was struggling himself.

Talking about his own situation had been an obvious battle for him.

Tony’s struck with admiration for the guy—he’d lost his father as a baby and his mother as a teenager to an illness she’d contracted working as a nurse. He and his best friend had joined the army not long after graduating from high school and just a year into their service, his friend had been killed.

It’s never occurred to Tony before that having the latest and greatest offensive weapons might not be the best way to keep their soldiers safe and his brain’s been whirring with ideas for defense ever since.

He wants to hear more about what Steve experienced and honestly, the guy looks like he could use a friend.

He’s pleasant and smiles easily when he’s talking to anyone, but the second the attention slips away, so does his mask.

Tony approaches him as he’s gathering up his stuff, a motorcycle helmet slung under one arm. “Uh, hey, hi,” he says. “Tony Stark?”

Rogers’ mouth quirks in a faint smile. “Yeah, I remember.” He looks at Tony for a second and then sticks out a hand. “Steve Rogers.”

“Yeah, uh, I know,” Tony says, and shakes it, blushing. What the hell, could he be more of a ditz?

A beat goes by and Steve’s eyebrows rise. “Is there something I can help you with, Mister Stark?”

“Jesus,” Tony blurts, “usually I am not this awkward, okay, I don’t know what’s happening here.”

“Me neither,” Steve says, and he sounds amused.

“Would you—would you want to go grab a bite? I don’t know if you’re aware, but I kind of have the corner market on weapons in the US—”

“I’m aware.”

“—and I’d like to hear more about your experiences—and, uh, more about. You.”

Steve starts to look shuttered and uncertain. “Mister Stark, I’m not too sure the US should _have_ a corner market on weapons, I don’t know that I want to talk to you about—”

“That,” Tony says, and Steve’s eyebrows climb up his forehead again. “That’s exactly what I want you to talk to me about.”

Tony’s never in his life wanted someone’s approval so badly and he does his best not to squirm as Steve sizes him up again.

“All right,” Steve says at last. “I’ll let you buy.”

Tony can’t help it; he laughs.


	14. Prostitute Steve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** None
> 
> **Tags:** Prostitution, Flirting, Sexual Innuendo, First Time

“Hi, I need to get laid yesterday. How much?” Tony asks, and the guy at the bar gives him a critical once-over before taking a sip out of the glass raised to his mouth. Tony wants to do bad things to that mouth.

“What makes you think I’m workin’?” the guy asks, cool as can be. There’s a hint of a Brooklyn accent and Tony finds he likes it.

He smirks. “Let’s just say I’ve got a sixth sense for these things.”

The blond leans forward, eyelashes low, lips parted, and his hand reaches for Tony’s slacks. Tony’s libido hops on board faster than a hobo jumps on a train. Then he pulls back, a card between his fingers and a smile on his lips. “Who gave you my number?”

Tony pouts. “You’re a ruiner.” He leans against the bar and swirls the ice around in his glass, trying to look nonchalant when he says, “Rhodey gave me your number. Said if I was going to do something stupid, I oughta do it with you. Wouldn’t tell me why the hell he knew a prostitute either.”

“I’m an escort,” Steve says (what a boring name for a prostitute, right?), but his eyes are twinkling. He gives Tony another up and down and says, “First time with a guy?”

The blush rises up from under Tony’s collar of it’s own volition. “Yeah. Is that a problem?”

Steve shakes his head, slings back the rest of his drink. Then he smiles and puts his hand on Tony’s hip and Tony’s heart does a loop-de-loop. “That’s kind of my specialty.”

Tony’s eyebrows go up. “You got a thing for virgins?”

Steve huffs a laugh. “Not exactly. I like showing people the ropes is all. First-timers tend to be less pushy in my experience. It’s a tough thing letting it all go. I’m good at making people feel at ease.”

He’s just a few inches from Tony’s face now, breath warm on his skin and sweet-smelling, Tony notices with surprise. That wasn’t alcohol.

“I’ll make you feel good, Mister Stark,” he murmurs.

“I’m counting on it.”


	15. Tony is Scared of the Dark and Steve Finds Out Why

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> onemuseleft asked:
> 
> Steve finding out that Tony is afraid of the dark and why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warnings:** Discussion About Past Child Abuse
> 
> **Tags:** Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst, New Relationship, Past Child Abuse, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting

A loud, gasping yell jerks Steve awake, followed immediately by hands pushing at him, violently shoving away from him. Knobby heels kick at his shins, and then there’s a flare of bright blue-white light, followed by the sound of a body hitting the floor.

It takes him a second, but he realizes: “Tony?”

A low groan sounds from beside the bed. “JARVIS, gimme lights.”

The request is immediately granted.

Steve scrubs his face in an attempt to brush off the lingering grogginess adrenaline hasn’t wiped away, and then swings his legs over, scooting toward the edge of the bed.

Beside it on all fours is Tony, his back hunched and one hand pressed to the bottom curve of the arc reactor.

“Tony?” Steve says again, uncertain. They’ve only been dating a few weeks. This is only the third time he’s shared a bed with Tony and he’s not sure if it’s his place. Tony might not want him—

He’s starting to shift back to give Tony his privacy when Tony reaches up over the edge of the bed and fists one hand in Steve’s sleep pants. “Sorry,” he croaks, “just—just give me a second to catch my breath, okay, I’m—” He doesn’t say what he is, but his other hand is reaching.

Steve takes it and threads their fingers together, leans down to press a tentative kiss to the top of his head.

Tony huffs, and his fingers curl tighter around Steve’s. After a minute, he finally lifts his head and shifts, groaning. He wobbles, hands pressing into Steve’s grip as he drags himself to his feet and onto the bed.

Steve draws him in close, curling his arm around Tony’s back and laying his head on top of Tony’s. “Nightmare?”

Tony shakes his head. “Woke up and I couldn’t see.” He taps the arc reactor. “The dark. It… We’re not on friendly terms.”

A slithering guilt worms to life in Steve’s gut. He’d pulled the blankets up, covered the arc reactor with his hand to block it out. He swallows thickly, “Tony, I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”

“Don’t apologize,” Tony mutters and tilts his face so that his nose skims along the under side of Steve’s jaw. “You didn’t know. It’s hard to sleep with, I know. Normally I wear something to dim it. Didn’t think tonight. My fault.”

Steve holds him closer. “That’s why you don’t close the shutters all the way.”

He feels Tony smile into his throat. “Right in one. It’s just—a thing, you know. Like—a peeve. Only when I get this peeve, I kind of freak out and kick the hell out of my boyfriend. Are you okay, by the way? I mean, I know you’re super, but I think I got you pretty good.”

“My shins might bruise,” Steve says amiably.

Tony snorts. Then he leans his forehead into Steve’s chest, face carefully tilted away from it. “Dad used to lock me in closets when I was being a brat. It left a lingering impression.”

Steve stares out at the twinkling city skyline.

“Sorry,” Tony mutters. “I know you and him were kind of—”

“It’s probably just as well Howard died before I made it here; it’s bad PR if Captain America socks an nonagenarian in the jaw.” He flushes immediately after he’s said it, because Tony may talk shit about his old man, but he gets riled up in a hurry anytime anyone else does it.

But Tony barks out a laugh. “Now _that’s_ an image.”


	16. Tony Gets Hurt After Tempting Fate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** Hurt/Comfort, Hurt!Tony, Jell-O, Established Relationship

“Will you take a chill pill, Cap, we got this. I think you need to see Charlie about a massage because you are tense and there’s nothing to worry about,” Tony says–which of course is when everything goes straight to hell.

Steve has just enough time to scream Tony’s name and then Tony’s hurtling from the air, landing in a spray of gravel and digging a twelve foot long trench with a horrific sound of squealing metal.

For a second Steve’s heart stops.

Then Tony makes a thin wobbling sound and croaks, “Not dead. Wish I was.” He groans. “Definitely not.”

Natasha winds up being the one quick and small enough to end the fight.

Later, when Tony’s in the hospital, head wrapped and shoulder set, neck brace in place, Steve leans against his uninjured side and lifts a spoonful of blue Jell-O to Tony’s mouth. “I wish you hadn’t said that,” he sighs. “You know better.”

Tony smiles sheepishly, teeth spotted with blue. “Oops.”


	17. Struggling!Steve and Supportive!Tony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** Angsty!Steve, Supportive!Tony, mention of Bucky Barnes, Good Boyfriend Tony Stark
> 
> **Warnings:** None

Steve kisses him, but it’s unlike any kiss he’s ever given Tony before.

He’s rough, teeth catching on Tony’s lips, his hands gripping a little too hard around Tony’s shoulders. There’s something desperate in the way he works his mouth, tongue probing like he’s trying to coax something out of Tony.

He breaks away, breathing heavily, and Tony’s eyes chase his face, trying to get a good look at it. His lips are hot and swollen from encountering Steve’s teeth, but he ignores that, curls his hands around Steve’s shoulders. “Steve,” he says, “what’s going on, what’s up with you?”

He catches a glimpse of Steve’s brow furrowing into deep lines. He’s still breathing funny, and it takes a second for Tony to realize he isn’t breathing heavily, his breaths are hitching, catching in his chest short and sharp.

“Steve,” he says again, voice gone soft.

“I can’t,” Steve finally chokes and Tony runs his fingers through Steve’s hair, holds onto his arm.

“What can’t you?”

Steve shakes his head, breaths coming stronger and more ragged. “It’s my fault.”

“What is, what’s your fault, honey?” Tony asks. “We can fix it, whatever it is.”

Steve shakes his head again, deflates a little, his head sinking onto Tony’s shoulder. “Can’t,” he repeats.

“Can’t what?” Tony presses.

Aside from his ragged breathing, it’s silent for a long time. “Bucky,” he grits out between his teeth. “I let him down. I can't—”

Tony understands then. Since his arrival at the Tower, Bucky’s mostly been avoiding Steve. Tony’d heard him explain once in a low voice to Natasha that it was too much pressure.

“You didn’t,” Tony says. Then, “It’s not your fault. I know it doesn’t seem like it, but you’re helping. I promise. Everybody needs someone like you in their corner. Who doesn’t give up. Who keeps pushing.” He leans down and kisses the top of Steve’s head, wishing he could make it easier. “I know I did.”


	18. Steve is Honest with a Mostly Asleep Tony in the Workshop

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** Exhaustion, Sleep Deprivation, Pre-Relationship, Bittersweet, Sleepy!Tony
> 
> **Warnings:** None

Somewhere in the back of his brain, Tony recognizes the sound of someone entering the workshop, but he can’t work up enough interest or energy to drag himself from his mostly-asleep state, slumped over the workshop bench. It feels like he’s been overstuffed and weighed down, exhaustion heavy in every atom of his body.

Footsteps come closer and Tony hears a soft huff that he recognizes as Steve.

“Tony,” he sighs, but there’s something soft in his voice.

He moves closer still and then Tony feels his hand, fingers gentle against the back of his neck. It makes his muscles go looser, softer. Sleep spins the cobwebs thicker in his brain.

“You shouldn’t do this to yourself,” Steve murmurs.

_I have to_ , Tony thinks. He’s too tired to argue with Steve. He’s too tired to even wake up properly.

“You don’t have to. I know you’re afraid. We’re…” Steve blows out a breath and says, voice gone soft, “I’m scared, too. But you don’t have to do this alone. We— _I_ am here for you.”

_Gotta keep you safe._

Steve’s hand strokes tenderly through the hair at the nape of his neck and Tony thinks he must be asleep; he’s dreaming.

There’s a long pause and then Steve mutters, “And some day I’ll get up the courage to tell you that to your face. …you’re a piece of work, Rogers.” His muttering turns incomprehensible and then his hands, warm and huge are curling around Tony and he comes a little more awake, heavy limbs flailing weakly as Steve lifts him.

“Tony? Hey, shh, it’s just me, Steve.” His hand splays over the center of Tony’s back, big palm leeching heat in every direction and he goes lax in Steve’s grip. He’s safe. Steve has him. “You fell asleep in the shop. I’m taking you upstairs,” he goes on, voice pitched low and soothing. Tony mumbles something in reply, he’s not even sure what, and immediately starts to slip back into soft nothingness.


	19. Dr. Strange De-Ages Tony to Save His Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked:
> 
> I haven't had a bad day tbh but I've been stuck on an airplane and constantly running around... Can I have some deaged Tony with mild angst and a ton of fluff? I love my tiny sad nerd son and also you

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** De-Aging, De-Aged!Tony, Kid Tony Stark, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Worried!Steve, Stephen Strange, Peter Quill, Established Relationship, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting
> 
> **Warnings:** Implied child abuse

De-aging is Stephen Strange’s idea.

They need to get back to New York, back to Tony’s spare reactor, since the one in his chest was destroyed during their encounter with the Dire Wraiths.  Quill swears he can get them back to Earth in three days or less, and while it’s theoretically possible for Tony to survive that long, Steve really doesn’t want to find out whether or not that’s pushing things. They’re always dealing with things eating away at the week or so Tony supposedly has before the shrapnel would shred his heart, and Steve doesn’t want to cut into that if they can avoid it. Someday they’re going to run into a situation where there isn’t a spare arc reactor or a Stephen Strange with magic at the ready. It terrifies him to think of what will happen then.

So when Stephen suggests they revert Tony back to a child to prevent the damage, Steve—well, Steve demands to know what he’s waiting for.

He’s not sure what it is that prevents Strange from just magicking away the shrapnel, but then again he doesn’t know a thing about magic, so there’s obviously some kind of limitation there or Strange would do it.

Steve’s also not sure why Tony has to be five years old, presumably Strange has some kind of logic for choosing that age—unless he doesn’t choose at all? Maybe it’s random and Tony just happened to become five. But then wouldn’t it be possible for Tony to age back so far he’d become a fetus?

It hurts his head to think about, so he puts it aside in favor of focusing on the boy in front of him. Tony is a small five, with smooth olive skin and a huge tuft of jet black hair that flops and falls in his enormous brown eyes. The Avengers joke that Tony has Bambi eyes, and it’s never been more true.

“Hi,” Steve says, kneeling.

Tony slinks backward a little, his eyes darting around the ship. “Where am I?” he asks. “Who are you?”

Steve hesitates, not sure what to tell him. He doesn’t want to scare Tony more. Then it occurs to him that Tony had known who he was even as a child. He turns and gets the shield, comes back and shows it to Tony, who’s eyes grow wide. “I’m Steve,” he says. “You probably know me as Captain America.”

“You’re Captain America?” Tony breathes.

Steve nods.

Tony stares at him, awestruck for another second, then his expression contorts, anger twisting his small features. He lunges at Steve, pushing the shield away and lashing out at him with tiny fists. “ _I hate you!_ ” he shrieks. “I hate you! My dad is never home because of you, he loves you more than me.” Tony’s anger peters out and he starts to cry, sinking to the floor and burying his face in his knees.

“Tony…” Steve breathes, aching. “God, Tony, I’m so sorry.”

Tony struggles a little when Steve gathers him up, but his heart isn’t in it and he ends up clinging, sobbing into Steve’s chest.

It’s awful.

The rest of the trip goes like that, Tony delighted with and furious with him in turns. He’s brilliant and observant even as a five year old and he seems to know that the view outside the ship’s windows shouldn’t be possible.

When they get back to Earth, Tony’s hand tightens around Steve’s fingers as they walk down the ramp onto the Tower’s flight pad. Steve crouches to look at him. “Tony, is everything okay?”

Tony won’t quite look him in the eye. “Are you going to take me back to my dad?” he asks in a whisper.

“We’re going to go see a doctor,” Steve says, because he doesn’t know how to explain what’s going on to a five year old, even one as smart as Tony is. “I’ll stay with you the whole time.”

Tony nods, but Steve can see he’s still afraid. Tony doesn’t mention it again, even when Steve hoists him into the bed in the medical bay, even when the doctors come. He just holds Steve’s hand in a white-knuckled grip and sits, silent and accepting of whatever’s going to happen. It’s one of the most horrible things Steve’s ever seen.

He strokes Tony’s hair, kisses his head, tries to reassure him the best he can.

Then Strange turns him back, and Tony’s hand grows between his fingers, fills his palm, turns rough and scarred. Rhodey works quickly, swapping out the old, ruined reactor for the new replacement. Tony shudders as it clicks into place.

His eyes open and he squints at Steve, who brushes the sweat-damp hair back off of his forehead. Tony squeezes his hand, looks at Rhodey. “What happened?”

“Stephen saved your life,” Steve says.

Tony reaches up to feel at the arc reactor, looks around at the medical bay. “We’re home.”

“Yeah,” Steve says and leans forward, kisses Tony’s forehead. “We’re home and you’re alive.”

“I knew that plan would work,” Tony says and closes his eyes.

Steve laughs even though he wants to cry. “Idiot.”


	20. Three Sentence Fics

[notanightlight](http://notanightlight.tumblr.com/) asked:

#  [Steve/Tony - Somedays just didn't start off the way he wanted them to.](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136577923095/stevetony-somedays-just-didnt-start-off-the)

[3 January 2016](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136577923095/stevetony-somedays-just-didnt-start-off-the)

“Captain Rogers’ plane went down over the Pacific, the cyclone–”

“Okay, fine, get the coordinates, I’ll go get him myself,” Tony says, impatient.

The agent hesitates. “We weren’t able to retrieve them.”

Some days don’t start off the way Tony wants, and others, they start out even worse.

* * *

 

Anonymous asked:

#  [Steve/Tony Sometimes you break my heart in all of the good ways.](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136583281725/stevetony-sometimes-you-break-my-heart-in-all-of)

[3 January 2016](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136583281725/stevetony-sometimes-you-break-my-heart-in-all-of)

You say you’re not good with kids, that you won’t have one because you know you’d only screw them up. You don’t get to see yourself the way I see you.

You don’t see how kind and gentle you are with the kids you rescue from crumbling buildings. You don’t see how easily you can make conversation with an eight-year-old six weeks into chemo treatment.

But I see you, and I know if you let yourself, you could be incredible.

* * *

 

#  [Steve/Tony: "Wake up!"](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136587183535/stevetony-wake-up)

[3 January 2016](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136587183535/stevetony-wake-up)

Steve jerks upright, gasping at the lap of icy cold water at his waist. “Tony?” he blurts.

“You’re awake!” Tony calls and Steve twists around to find he’s pinned against one metal wall in the suit. “I was afraid we were going to end up as popsicles together this time. Come get me out of here!”

Steve shakes off the roll of nauseating terror that summons and scrambles to his feet, water splashing up around his ribs–it looks like it’s rising.

* * *

 

Anonymous asked:

#  [Stony - As Steve kisses him, Tony thought, "Oh, shit. I love him."](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136588013580/stony-as-steve-kisses-him-tony-thought-oh)

[3 January 2016](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136588013580/stony-as-steve-kisses-him-tony-thought-oh)

It’s like tingles and butterflies and all of that bullshit he never believed in because he never let himself. No one was ever going to love _him_ like that. And yet here he is.

The kiss ends softly, the same way it began, and Steve says, “Thank you, Tony. I know it’s kind of weird, me asking you to do this–”

Tony smiles wide as he can. “No problem, Cap. Always love a little fake-dating between friends.”

* * *

 

Anonymous asked:

#  [Stony - "I thought you were dead!"](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136657755660/stony-i-thought-you-were-dead)

[4 January 2016](http://musicalluna.tumblr.com/post/136657755660/stony-i-thought-you-were-dead)

Steve’s still gasping, thick sweet lungfuls of air when he replies, “Yeah, me too.”

When he manages to blink the water out of his vision, Tony’s right there, his gauntleted hands gripping Steve’s shoulders. His eyes are wild, the irises completely surrounded by white.

“You son of a bitch,” he says and Steve blinks when his voice cracks a little at the end, “I thought you were _dead.”_

That’s when Tony kisses him.

 


	21. Tony Has a Bad PTSD Day and Steve Comforts Him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** PTSD, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Cold, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Cuddling, Hugs, Angsty Fluff, Established Relationship, Explicit Language
> 
> **Warnings:** None

Everyone expects Steve to have a problem with the cold, but it doesn’t much bother him. He’s a lot more uncomfortable with waking up in strange places. Planes crashing. Everything after the crash is hazy at best, so he doesn’t associate cold with anything other than New York winters.

Tony, on the other hand, underwent radical surgery and torture with ice water in a chilly cave for three months. He doesn’t handle it well.

Steve knows today is one of the difficult days because when Tony shows up in the doorway to Steve’s studio, he’s wearing a thick knit sweater and a scarf, clutching a steaming mug in his hands. Shivers ripple down his arms periodically. “I fucking hate winter,” he says venomously.

Putting down his pencil, Steve swivels and extends his hands. Tony’s moving before they’re even up all the way, pressing himself into Steve’s space, against his body. Steve wraps one arm snugly around him and uses the other to rub big circles on his back.

Tony’s shivering, or maybe trembling—possibly both—but he sinks into Steve’s touch gratefully. He takes an unsteady breath and buries his face in the crook of Steve’s neck. “Y’re warm,” he mumbles. It’s a familiar refrain. Steve kisses his temple and hugs him a little tighter. “You know what did it?” he asks.

Tony nods. “Splashed by some dimwit putting their wiper blades on super speed right off the bat. ’s been sleeting all day. Got down my shirt. I—”

Steve stops him there. “Threw your day off track, huh?”

Tony lets out a harsh bark of laughter. “To say the least.”

“May I?” Steve asks, brushing his fingers down the side of Tony’s knee to indicate what he wants.

He feels Tony swallow, then he breathes, “Please,” and Steve hooks his hand under Tony’s knee and hefts him easily up into his lap, cradling him close. He runs hot, and holding Tony like this he can surround him with that heat, the way he smells.

“Thanks,” Tony mutters into his own lap.

Steve kisses the crown of his head and strokes his arm, nice and slow. “Don’t mention it.”


	22. Gangster AU Where Steve's Boyfriend Has Been Kidnapped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> galaxiethot asked:  
> i was up until 5 in the morning doing hw that my prof didnt even take up. Im shitty and i accidentally missed a class. maybe gangster/mob au? idk or just write whatever makes u happy. i just saw ur call my friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that is pretty much the worst school day i can imagine, i’m so sorry. i hope today was less terrible <3  
> \--  
>  **Tags:** Gangster AU, Mob Boss!Steve, Blood, Hurt/Comfort, Violence, Hurt!Tony, First I Love Yous, Protective Steve Rogers, Established Relationship

“Where is he?” Steve demands, rising up out of the car in one fluid, deadly-looking motion. He cuts an intimidating figure in his black wool trenchcoat, with the collar unfolded to guard his neck and face from the cold. Probably the only reason Natasha doesn’t wet herself when he looks at her is because she’s heard the soft, gentle voice he uses when someone in the crew is hurting and she knows he’s not angry at her.

“Inside,” she replies. “There were six holding him, we took care of them.” Steve is already headed inside and she has to walk fast to keep up with his long strides. “He’s okay, but they roughed him up a little. He’s a mess.”

Steve’s jaw clenches, the muscle jumping in his cheek.

“He’s okay, Steve. We got him back.”

“He shouldn’t have gone anywhere to begin with,” Steve bites out, and then they’re moving into the main bay of the warehouse and he tunes her out completely.

“Here, Cap,” Clint calls and Steve outpaces her, almost running to where Clint is standing next to Tony, seated on an up-ended crate. His suit is torn in some places, cut in others, his shirt gaping open to reveal the glowing circle in his chest because half the buttons are missing. He’s covered in blood.

The majority of it is from a three inch long cut near his hairline. It had obviously bled profusely, because half his face is crusted in it, and it’s soaked his shirt collar, dripped all the way down to his thighs.

“Tony,” Steve breathes and strips off his gloves, dropping them carelessly on the floor so he can cup Tony’s face between his hands, tilting his face up to get a good look at it.

Tony smiles wanly in response, one hand curling around Steve’s wrist. “’m okay. Steve. ’m fine.”

“You’re not,” Steve says, eyes still raking over him. “Jesus, Tony, this is a lot of blood.”

“It’s really not. I’ve been kidnapped before, Steve, this really wasn’t a big deal—”

Tony goes quiet when he sees whatever the look on Steve’s face is, and Natasha imagines it’s somewhere between wild relief and incandescent rage.

“They took you to use you as leverage against me,” Steve says quietly. “I do this to protect people. Not to see the man I love covered in his own blood like an animal taken to slaughter.”

Tony swallows, his hands now smoothing and straightening Steve’s coat. He coughs. “You, uh… Love?”

Natasha can imagine the soft look on Steve’s face when he says, “Yes. I know the timing’s not great, but yes.”

Tony cups the back of his neck, fingers combing through the hair at the nape of Steve’s neck, staring back at him with pure adoration. “Love you, too.”

Steve kisses him.

Natasha’s starting to wonder if they’re going to need to be broken up when something explodes at the back of the room. Steve immediately whips Tony around, shielding him with his own body, and she and Clint put themselves between them and whatever the hell that was.

“I thought you said it was clear!” Steve snaps.

“It _was_ ,” Natasha barks in reply.

“Oops,” Tony says.

Natasha wants to turn and stare, but she can’t risk it.

“'Oops’,” Clint says. “What’s ‘oops’?”

Tony coughs again. “I, uh, might have rigged up some of their merch to explode. I forgot about that.”

Natasha groans.

When she turns around, she regrets it, because Steve is busy showing Tony just how glad he is they found him alive.


	23. College AU Where Extremely Stressed Steve Gets Rescued by Tony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> dingobait asked:  
> Crap day fic prompt: How about you're graduating in three weeks and you've just been told you need to move out of your place by the middle of next week? Plus your cars broken down and you need a replacement- plus you're dealing with RSI because of assignments- my weeks been shit and I'd love a fic that has a happy ending!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** Stress, Anxiety, Bad Day, Pre-Serum!Steve, College AU, Metaphorical Knight in Shining Armor Tony, Pre-Relationship, Crying!Steve
> 
>  **Warnings:** None

Rain starts to seep through the crack in the windshield and Steve splutters, leaning back to get out from under the worst of it. He wipes his eyes, then sits there in stunned silence for a minute, watching as water streams down the crack and starts to pool on the dashboard, as it drips from near the roof down over the steering wheel to the floor between his knees.

He stares and stares and stares and all of the sudden it’s too much.

He’s three weeks from graduating and less than a week from being kicked out of his apartment. He’s had more than the recommended dose of ibuprofen for the day because his wrist is wrecked after cranking out drawings non-stop for the last two weeks. Now there’s a _tree_ on his _car_.

Steve’s next breath hitches on the way in, his eyes stinging sharply.

He can’t do this.

He’s hanging desperately on the precipice of tears when someone taps on the window, startling him. Wiping jerkily at his eyes, Steve takes a deep breath and then pushes the door open.

To his surprise, he’s not immediately soaked.

A wiry guy with wild brown hair and huge brown eyes peeks around the door. He’s holding an umbrella, which is what’s keeping Steve dry.

“I’m sorry,” Steve says, and hates the way his voice wavers. “I can't— My car’s stuck—”

The guy lets out a startled laugh. “Yeah, I know, there’s a tree on it. Are you okay?”

Steve doesn’t know how to answer that. “I’m not hurt,” he finally settles on. Then adds, “At least not because of this.”

Big, dark eyes glance down at the brace around his wrist. “Okay. If you’re sure.”

“Yeah,” Steve says. “Yeah, I just—” To his mortification, he starts to breathe too short and too shallow as panic starts to overwhelm him. “I don’t know what I’m going to do. If I don’t have a car I’m not going to be able to get to class, I won’t be able to take my mom to work, I don’t have the money to fix this, I have to _move_ , where am I going to—”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” he hears, and then rain sprinkles his hand, and something warm grips his shoulder. “Hey, breathe.”

“ _I’m going to have to drop out._ ”

“Okay, now, I don’t know the exact circumstances here, but that seems drastic. Come on, come here. Get out of this car, it’s freezing and wet.”

Steve lets the hand on his arm pull him out, then he’s being led over to a sleek black town car a few spaces over and ushered inside. It’s warm, like sinking into a bath, the leather like butter under his hands. Steve leans over and puts his head between his knees. God, he wishes Bucky were here.

There’s a tentative pause, then he feels a hand on his back, gentle and warm and reassuring.

Embarrassment washes over Steve, flooding his face with heat. “I’m sorry, oh god, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be—fuck.”

“Wow, you are really stressed out, aren’t you?” the guy says and his hand starts making circles on Steve’s back. It’s uncomfortably soothing.

“What do you care?” Steve bites out and immediately hates himself for it. The guy is only trying to help.

Steve feels him shrug in the shift of the weight of his hand. “I’ve seen you around campus. I saw what you did for that kid in the library last week. And the girl in the cafeteria a few weeks before that. I saw the tree come down. I just thought, you know. You deserved to have someone help you the way you helped them.”

“I didn’t do anything special,” Steve mutters.

The guy shrugs again. “Maybe not, but it meant something to those kids. It meant something to me.”

Steve flushes and turns his head to peek at the other guy over his own shoulder. He smiles and Steve’s heart turns over in his chest.

“So, I can fix your car,” he says, apropos of nothing.

That makes Steve sit up. “You _can?_ ”

“Well, it won’t be pretty, but I can make it run. And if it’s weird I understand, but, uh, I’ve got a room. If you need it. To move into?”

Steve stares at him.

“You— _really?_ ”

The guy’s eyes slip sideways and he shrugs and Steve realizes he’s embarrassed. “Yeah, sure. It’s not a big deal. If you want.”

“Yeah, that—that would be—wow.”

The guy smiles shyly at him. “I’m Tony, by the by.”

“Steve.”

They shake and Tony holds on to Steve’s hand a little longer than necessary. A pleasant flush winds it’s way through Steve’s body, into his face, his belly. This awful day is finally starting to look up.


	24. Steve is Very Depressed and Wrecks His Hands--Tony Takes Care of Him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** Depression, Blood, Grief, Crying!Steve, Emotional Hurt/Comfort
> 
> **Warnings:** depression-type feelings, suicidal ideation, general misery

Steve punches until he runs out of bags, and when he runs out of bags, he drops to his knees and drives his fists into the remains until the floor splinters under the onslaught and there’s sand scattered all around him. Then his heaving breaths morph into quick, dry sobs that make his chest ache. The tape around his hands is shredded, jagged splinters sticking out of his knuckles at all angles. Blood starts to drip into the sand, leaving dark, perfect circles that blur abruptly.

He plants his palms and heaves with sobs that make him feel like he’s going to be sick, tears bubbling out between his eyelids and leaving wet trails down the sides of his face, curling unpleasantly under his chin. He can’t stop, can’t even get a complete thought to cross his mind, just fragments: _I can't— It hurts— I wish I’d never woken up— Don’t wanna do this— Can't—not anymore too much please please please…_

It feels like he’s suffocating even with his chest hitching in and out, taking in huge whaling breaths. He knows this isn’t normal, that yesterday he’d been fine, happy even, but it seems far off and like too little here and now. Now he can’t imagine ever feeling like that again, even though he knows this will pass. He doesn’t want to do this anymore, it’s too hard.

Steve tries to swipe the tears away only to have them instantly replaced, his breathing so fast it feels like there’s a knot behind his breastbone.

Suddenly he hears hurried footsteps and he tries harder, swipes at his face even though he knows it’s blotchy red and swollen by now.

“Steve?”

It’s Tony.

“Steve,” he breathes and Steve turns his face away, hoping if he doesn’t look at him, he won’t notice. Or maybe he’ll pretend he doesn’t. He simultaneously wants that and doesn’t just as powerfully.

“Tony,” he replies, making his voice as even as he can. It doesn’t do anything to hide how congested he sounds. He licks a salty drop from the corner of his mouth.

“Hey,” Tony says and Steve bites his lip when Tony kneels next to him, tears springing up so quick everything goes blurry again. He tries to hold them there, but Tony touches his arm and he shudders, sucks in a gasp because he was holding his breath to keep from sobbing. Humiliation washes through him, but Tony just grips his arm tighter and leans in, interlocking their knees and getting his arms around Steve in a tight hug.

That’s the last straw and Steve lets out a loud, barking sob, arms tightening around Tony and it just shakes out of him, tears pouring so thick and fast the shoulder of Tony’s t-shirt is soaked in seconds. He heaves and heaves with wild, awful noises and Tony just holds on, gripping him tight and shushing him, rocking back and forth slightly.

After several long, agonizing minutes, Steve has worn himself out and the sobs peter, the tears fading to a trickle.

Tony is stroking the back of his neck with one hand murmuring something that’s not English with full vowels that sounds nice. Steve sags against him, too tired to hold himself up fully anymore.

Later, Tony will take care of the damage he’s done to his hands, but for now, he closes swollen and burning eyes and lets Tony’s body against his, the rocking, and his soft words ease the knot in his chest.

With Tony, he’ll find a way to keep going.


	25. Tiberius Tries to Make Tony Relive the Good Old Days and Steve Intervenes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> attempt to make my wife un-divorce me again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **tags:** Established Relationship, Possessive!Steve, Tiberius Stone, Steve's Policy is Talk Shit Get Hit, Evil Ex Tiberius Stone
> 
> **warnings:** implied that a character is going to/has committed sexual assault on another character, violence, possessiveness, explicit language

There’s a technology expo in town, and Tony “has” to go for work. Steve thinks if Tony “had” to go, he wouldn’t be as excited as he is about the whole thing.

Steve decides to tag along, to see what he can learn (it gets Tony really wound up when he can talk knowledgeably about science or engineering or math, plus it could come in handy) and because it’s fun watching Tony get so worked up.

They’ve been wandering around the floor for about two hours and Steve’s eye catches on a special pen that apparently can write in any color. Tony is busy arguing with the owner of one of the booths about some kind of advanced math, so Steve doesn’t feel too bad slipping off to go look. He’s watching the demonstration when he hears something that catches his attention, even through all the noise at the convention.

“Stop it.”

Steve’s not sure why he’s suddenly aware of Tony’s voice and he frowns, turning back to try and see him over the crowd. He’s not at the booth where Steve left him.

“Ty. Would you—knock it off, I said no, dammit.”

“You said that a lot then, too,” another voice replies, laughing.

“It’s not fucking funny,” Tony snaps.

It takes some hunting, but Steve finally finds him, somehow chivvied back in a corner between two of the booths. There’s a tall blond man in front of him and—

“Excuse me,” Steve barks, “I think you’d better stop.”

Tony is up against the wall, clearly trying to distance himself from the man, but instead of taking a hint, the guy has one hand hooked possessively around Tony’s hip, the other holding one of his wrists and keeping it immobile.

“This is none of your business,” he drawls and then tries to make Tony kneel.

Steve sees red.

When he can see clearly again, Tony’s in front of him, one hand curled around his elbow, his expression shocked. “Hey, hey, Steve? Steve? Are you with me?”

“Yeah—I'm—” A surge of rage rolls through him. “Where is he?”

Tony points. The blond man is crumpled in a heap by the wall clutching at an obviously broken nose, which is pouring blood down his front. Steve is surprised he’s not dead.

“I thought you were going to kill him, and while he possibly deserves it, I’m glad you didn’t,” Tony says.

“He was going to—”

“Yeah, Caveman. He was gonna try. I would have repulsored him in the balls before it came to that, come on, I can take care of myself.”

Steve tries to shake off the anger and can’t do it. “I know you can. I know, I just—I heard and—”

“Ah,” Tony says. His fingers touch Steve’s arm gently and that somehow manages to take the wind out of his fury. “Well, I appreciate the sentiment, I think.”

“I’m sorry,” Steve says. “Not for punching him, but for being all—”

Tony smiles in amusement. “Caveman?”

Steve ducks his head. “Yeah.”

“Well,” Tony murmurs, stepping a little closer, “at the risk of creating a monster—I kind of liked it.”


	26. Steve Had a Crappy Day and Crankily Asks For Comfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> upupandafuckingway asked:
> 
> I also had a terrible day and cried at work, it was a thing. How about Stony, aggressive little spoon!Steve Rogers and indulgent Tony petting his overworked, overtired boyfriend. Actually, how about Steve having a bad day and being an aggressive little spoon for the first time with Tony and at first Tony's surprised and unsure before he realizes he loves petting and soothing Steve and being his safe place.  
> \--  
> crying at work ugh, i’m sorry. i don’t know if this worked out to be exactly what you asked for, but I hope you like it anyway

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** Bad Day, Cranky Steve, Cuddling, Little Spoon!Steve, Big Spoon!Tony, Comfort, Established Relationship, Fluff, Insecure!Tony
> 
> **Warnings:** None

Tony expects Steve to climb into bed behind him and try to strangle the life out of him, the way he usually does after he’s had a shit-tacular day, so he’s surprised when Steve leans over the edge and pushes Tony toward the middle before climbing in himself and putting his back to Tony.

It hurts, unexpected and sharp.

Tony’s resigning himself to the cold sliminess in his gut and a less-than-restful night when Steve reaches back and takes him by the wrist. He tugs Tony’s arm over his waist, shifting back slightly into the curve of Tony’s body.

Into the pillow, he mutters, “Will you…” It trails off into something Tony can’t understand.

Tony tentatively covers Steve’s stomach with a hand, not wanting to go back to angry-Steve if that’s not a thing. “Sorry, I didn’t catch that.”

Steve huffs a sigh and repeats a little louder, a little impudently, “Will you hold me?”

Tony’s chest hurts again, but it’s a good hurt. He curls more snugly around Steve, snaking his right arm under Steve’s ribs. He wedges his knee between Steve’s. “Yeah, honey, of course,” he murmurs and kisses the back of Steve’s head. This is kind of new and he’s not 100% sure what the hell he’s doing, but he can fake it. That usually works.

Steve is tense, his muscles like stone against Tony’s body, and Tony knows it’s hard for him to let go, to admit to _needing_ anything, so he just cradles him tight and kisses his neck, his shoulder, the back of his head.

Eventually Steve starts to relax, letting out an unsteady breath and Tony rubs his hand down the center of Steve’s chest, caresses his ribs. He’s proud when Steve goes that much more boneless against him, burying his face in the crook of the arm Tony has underneath him.

He seems to want every inch of Tony plastered up against his back, and the idea that _Steve Rogers_ is seeking shelter in him makes Tony feel like he’s all but glowing inside.


	27. Broke But In Love AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked:
> 
> Two degrees down and still unemployed- spent the afternoon applying for jobs and looking at rent prices I can't afford in the city. Could I maybe have a college au with Steve and Tony dealing with the real world after graduation?  
> \--  
> I know at least one of these feels. BEING A GROWN UP SUCKS

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** Poverty, Millenial Feels, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Domesticity, Curtain Fic, Teeth Brushing, Established Relationship, Crying!Tony
> 
> **Warnings:** None

“This place is a shithole,” Tony complains when a cockroach darts across the bathroom floor. “Why don’t we get a better place?”

“Because we can’t afford a better place,” Steve reminds him and goes back to brushing his teeth, his eyes on his reflection in the chipping mirror. He’s so much bigger and broader than he was just four years ago. It’s strange to look at himself still sometimes.

Tony puts toothpaste on his own toothbrush, wets it, and scrubs his teeth violently for a few seconds. Then he sighs, and lays his head on Steve’s shoulder, ignoring the way it continues to move. “We have three degrees between us, why the hell not.”

Steve pulls the toothbrush out of his mouth and bends forward to spit. “Because the Baby Boomer generation got complacent and greedy,” he says into the sink. He turns on the tap and tilts his head so he can suck a little of the water into his mouth.

Behind him, he can hear Tony has started brushing again, but he’s also grumbling angrily—probably something unkind about their parent’s generation. Steve understands. He’d kind of known going into his degree that he’d have a hard time—the idea of the starving artist isn’t anything new—but Tony is a clever, brilliant mechanical engineer. He should be easily employable, but he’s twenty and with no experience, no one’s willing to give him a shot, even with two degrees under his belt at that age.

It’s absurd.

When Steve straightens up again, Tony’s quiet, even his brushing hushed.

“Hey,” Steve says, seeing his face. He looks on the verge of tears. Steve drops his toothbrush and moves into Tony’s space, curling a hand around his neck. “It’s okay, Tony.”

Tony blinks back the wetness in his eyes and pushes Steve aside so he can spit, choking out, “No. It’s not. It’s not okay. I want—I want an apartment with more than one window, Steve. I want to live somewhere it’s just the two of us, not you, me, and 60,000 roaches. I want…” His voice goes small. “I want to buy you an engagement ring.”

Steve’s heart clenches in his chest. “I know. I…I want that, too, Tony, I–” He brushes the pad of his thumb over the spot where a ring might sit on his finger and his chest aches with it. “We’ll figure it out. We’ll get there.”

“How do you know?” Tony asks sullenly, dropping his forehead onto Steve’s chest.

“I don’t,” Steve admits, “but it’s okay. I’ve got you. No matter what, I have you.”


	28. Tony and Previously-Presumed-to-be-Dead Steve Are Reunited

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> snoozingcat asked:  
> For the crappy day prompts: just dealing with general PMS fuckery right now. it still sucks. I'm always weak for presumed dead fic, so something with that and stevetony, if you're up for it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ugh pms is the woooooooooorst, i’m sorry.
> 
> –
> 
> **Tags:** Presumed Dead, Reunited, Established Relationship, Crying!Tony, Hurt!Steve, Mild Explicit Language
> 
> **Warnings:** None

Tony literally, actually goes weak in the knees when Steve steps out of the plane and disembarks onto the tarmac. Rhodey has to grab him around the waist to keep him from going down then and there.

He wonders if this was what it was like for Pepper when he came back from Afghanistan.

Steve is limping significantly and he looks like ten miles of bad road, but he’s alive.  _Jesus Christ,_ he’s still alive.

There are tears shivering on the edge of Tony’s vision by the time Steve makes it across the pavement to where they’re waiting. He pauses just out of reach and meets Tony’s eyes, almost shyly. “I could sure use a hug right now.”

“You son of a bitch,” Tony chokes, his chest singing with horror at the rasp of Steve’s voice. “They told me you were dead.”

Steve shakes his head and it looks like it costs him to do it. “Tried it once, didn’t like it much.”

“Bastard,” Tony spits and launches himself into Steve’s arms.


	29. Steve Loses His Voice Mid-Battle and Scares the Bejeezus Out of Tony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> snoozingcat asked:  
> i'm not feeling well (so just like the last time I sent you a crappy day prompt, I think). I have a sore throat like you wouldn't believe, so-- maybe something where 1/2 of stevetony loses their voice? or goes off grid during a mission and scares the bejeesus out of the other. hope you feel better soon!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aw yuck. i hope this helps!
> 
> –
> 
> **Tags:** Mission Fic, Hurt!Steve Rogers, Protective Tony Stark, Established Relationship, Action, Suspense, Canon Typical Violence
> 
> **Warnings:** None

The fiasco is Tony’s fault.

He’s second in command, so it’s his job to tell Steve he’s being a moron when he’s being a moron. And going on a mission after nearly being choked out on a mission  _two days prior_  is  _being a moron._

But then, what kind of moron does that make Tony for not putting his foot down and benching him?

Supreme moron.

Steve’s voice has only been audible over the comms because they’re such good quality. He’s nearly incomprehensible in a non-tech enhanced conversation because the bruising around his trachea was so bad he’s about one yell away from losing his voice entirely.

Which, again, is why Tony is the Supreme Moron.

Everything is going fine until the swarms of A.I.M. lackeys start riding Tony’s ass with laser cannons. He has to pull his focus from keeping-an-eye-on-everyone-and-especially-Steve to making-A.I.M.-agents-sorry-they-ever-signed-up-for-this. 

That is, naturally, when he a) loses track of Steve and b) hears him attempt to yell something. He only gets three syllables out before his voice gives up the ghost and all Tony hears is his raspy breathing.

“Dammit, Rogers,” he snarls as he incinerates one of the cannons. “I should have insisted.” One of the cannons wings him, and cuts deep enough into the suit that he can feel the heat of it.

“Rerouting power to the anterior side of the gauntlet,” JARVIS reports.

“You just lost your voice, didn’t you?” Tony demands. A heavy exhale is all the reply he gets because, yeah, he lost it.  _Dammit._  “Widow, make a note. I’m fired. I am too much of a moron to be allowed to act as second command.”

“Noted,” Natasha replies dryly.

Tony takes out the last cannon viciously and then swoops down to skim close to the ground, wracking his brain to try and remember where he’d last spotted Steve. “Does anyone else have an eye on Cap?”

“Negative.”

“Nope.”

“Nay, it has been sometime since I laid eyes on the Captain.”

Tony swears and tries to look harder. “JARVIS, have we got him on the radar?”

“I’m afraid not, sir, it appears that the tracking chip in his uniform is malfunctioning.”

That’s when Tony really starts to sweat, his stomach churning. “Then I want you scanning every biometric you can find—you know his baselines, extrapolate accounting for exertion and stress and find him!”

“Yes, sir.”

Tony skims along the battlefield, keeping one ear on the comm and intervening when something pops up in his face or calls for his attention, but otherwise he’s wholly absorbed in locating Steve. Who shouldn’t have even  _been_  here, dammit. If something’s happened to him—

“Sir, I believe I’ve located him—” JARVIS starts and Tony shouts over him, “STEVE!”

One of the subterranean tunnels must have collapsed, because he’s about fifteen feet below ground level, and the A.I.M. guys are pressing their advantage, attempting to pick him off from the higher ground while their buddies try to get close enough to make a hit.

Steve’s favoring his right leg, but it almost isn’t even apparent he’s fighting back so hard.

“Cap, I’m coming in from your four o'clock.”

Tony sweeps in, barreling right through the crowd of bodies hovering around the edge of the sinkhole at a little over twenty miles an hour. They go bouncing off in every direction, and while Tony’s pretty sure he clipped most of them, he’s sure one or two of them got hit hard enough to do some real damage.

He’s all out of sympathy.

He loops around, slicing through the crowd on the other side and the few that are left standing get the picture and take off running.

Tony turns to head down to grab Steve just in time to see him get clocked hard enough to spin a little before he hits the dirt.

Tony sees red.

What follows is the white-hot glare of repulsors in every direction, so bright the HUD has difficulty compensating.

When he’s finished, no one’s left standing.

“Steve?” he demands, landing hard enough to make the ground shake ominously.

Steve has already shaken off the punch and gotten to his feet. He’s panting a little and favoring that leg more heavily now that he’s not mid-fight, but there aren’t any gashes in his suit and he seems overall all right.

“Buddy system for the rest of the fight,” Tony snaps, hands shaking inside the gauntlets as the fear recedes and takes the adrenaline with it. “Don’t like it, too bad. You can’t talk, you can’t argue.”

Steve smiles crookedly at him, the bastard, and touches his chin with a flat hand before lowering it in an arc;  _thank you._

“Yeah, yeah,” Tony grumbles and feels better when he’s put an arm around Steve’s waist. “We’re both fired.”

Steve shakes with silent laughter.


	30. Steve and Tony Get in a Car Crash

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **Tags:** Car Crash, Hurt!Steve, Hurt!Tony, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Protective Steve Rogers, Lack of Punctuation and Other Niceties
> 
> **Warnings:** None

so, like, steve and tony being in a car accident. and they’re all dazed and confused and tony is maybe a little unconscious and blood is sheeting down the side of steve’s face and the first thing he does when he gets his senses back is snap toward tony.

just imagine steve slowly gaining his bearings and looking over to find tony slumped in his seat and bleeding from small cuts and things. his heart stops

and steve ends up tearing off the door and going around to tony whom he speaks to in a low reassuring voice explaining what happened and hiding how nervous he is about how the seatbelt across tony’s chest affected the arc reactor

tony is scared and confused and in pain and he holds on tight to steve’s hand even after the paramedics come and he’s put on his Tony Stark face and is smiling and joking. pretending he’s okay with the fact that a bunch of people are about to see him opened up

steve can feel him shaking. he refuses to move or let anyone treat him until tony’s been safely removed and after that neither of them will let the other be taken out of their sight


	31. Steve's Sad and Tony Wants to Help

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked:  
> some oblivious steve/tony pining with a happy ending, perhaps? there's a bit of that going on at my end I'm afraid, but without any visible resolution :/

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Tags:** Pining, Oblivious!Tony, Pre-Relationship, Angst, Fluff, Get Together, Jealous!Tony
> 
>  **Warnings:** None

Steve’s been sad lately and Tony doesn’t know what to do about it. Natasha seems to think it’s a some _one_  and not a some _thing_  and that just makes Tony feel like shit. Steve isn’t  _his_ , he knows that, but for as long as he’s known him, Steve’s gone on a handful of dates and he’s never showed interest in anyone-–the idea that he might be-–feeling for someone makes Tony’s stomach turn.

At least if Steve is single he can have his daydreams. If there’s someone Steve wants, they’d have to be seriously deranged not to want him back and Tony (greedily perhaps) just wants him to himself-–even if it’s not entirely the way he wants.

So when Steve stops by the lab, Tony awkwardly says, “So, uh. You’ve been–-off lately. Is it something you want to–uh–talk about?”

Steve winces and Tony feels a spike of fear. Shit, he messed up.

“I mean, you don’t have to if you don’t want to-–it’s not a big deal, I can mind my own business–-I can totally mind my own business-–”

“No, it’s fine, I just-–didn’t realize I was so obvious,” Steve sighs and rubs a hand over his face. “You should know. It affects you.”

Tony stares at him, heart beating wildly against the reactor. “It does?”

Steve smiles crookedly at him, “Well, I am in love with you after all.”


	32. Tony Knows Steve Watches His Sex Tapes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> azulmay asked:  
> not exactly crappy but we were talking about how we like books an am like yeah i read a lot! and mom is like yeah is great to read even if it's just porn. I'M STILL sweating bullets!!!!! so something with tony like yeah I know you watch my sex tapes Steve...  
> \--  
> hahahaha omgggggg STRESS

Steve instantly breaks out in a sweat—across his forehead, under his arms, at the small of his back. He goes cold with it.

“I—that's—I don't—I-I—”

Tony smirks at him, his eyes dark, and it feels like Steve has swallowed his tongue. It’s alarmingly and shockingly familiar to when he got cornered by the Lieutenant and he had no idea what to do then and he has no idea what to do now.

“I don't— _watch_ them,” he stammers and when Tony’s eyebrows shoot up, Steve realizes what that  _sounds_ like and he flushes molten-hot all the way down to his navel. “I mean I do!” he practically yells and then falls into a mortified silence.

Tony seems surprised. His whole demeanor softens. “Really?” he says and his voice is kind. “I was just trying to wind you up, that's—” He looks genuinely curious when he leans forward. “How many of them?”

Steve is so shellshocked he answers. “Seven.”

Tony’s eyes go round. “That’s almost the full set.”

To his immense embarrassment, Steve can feel his blush deepening. “I couldn’t find the last one.”

Tony’s lips form a perfect o.

Steve covers his face and hunches his shoulders and groans. “God, Tony, I’m sorry, I know that’s awful, I’m your  _friend_ I shouldn’t have, I was invading your privacy and taking advantage and you—”

“Which was your favorite?”

Steve’s mouth swings open and closed again. “…Come again?”

Tony edges a little closer, and Steve feels like he’s been hit with a jolt of electricity when he sees the way Tony’s looking at him. “I’d like to. Now, Steve, tell me, which was your favorite?”


End file.
